TODAY IN HISTORY / March 25

The Associated Press Published: March 25, 2012 8:00 AM

Today is Sunday, March 25, the 85th day of 2012. There are 281 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On March 25, 1776, Gen. George Washington, commander of the Continental Army, was awarded the first Congressional Gold Medal by the Continental Congress for leading the liberation of Boston from British troops during the Revolutionary War.

On this date:

In 1306, Robert the Bruce was crowned the King of Scots.

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In 1894, Jacob S. Coxey began leading an "army" of unemployed from Massillon, Ohio, to Washington, D.C., to demand help from the federal government.

In 1911, 146 people, mostly young female immigrants, were killed when fire broke out at the Triangle Shirtwaist Co. in New York.

In 1965, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. led 25,000 marchers to the state capitol in Montgomery, Ala., to protest the denial of voting rights to blacks.

In 1990, 87 people, most of them Honduran and Dominican immigrants, were killed when fire raced through an illegal social club in New York City.

Five years ago: Iran announced it was partially suspending cooperation with the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency, citing what it called "illegal and bullying" Security Council sanctions imposed on the country for its refusal to stop enriching uranium.

One year ago: Canadian opposition parties brought down the Conservative government in a no-confidence vote, triggering an election that gave Prime Minister Stephen Harper a clear Conservative majority in Parliament.